Not Two, 2013 – MW 873-2 | CD

Steve Swell – Trombone | Roy Campbell Jr – Trumpet | Aaron Martin – Alto Sax | Edward Ricart – Guitar | Jason Ajemian – Bass | Vattel Cherry – Bass | Sam Lohman – Drums | Andrew Barker – Drums

Tracklist: 1. Sekhmet [35:16] 2. Amaterasu [37:10]

All music spontaneously composed live by the musicians at seizures palace on June 1, 2010. newatlantiscollective.com not & two records 2012 nottwo.com. Recorded + mixed by jason lafarge @ seizures palace seizurespalace.com. Mastered by myles boisen mylesboisen.com headless buddha. All artwork by a.p. Shrewsbury formlessmotions.blogspot.com. Text + additional layout by yank rig / kyanise grid. Produced by ed ricart and sam lohman. Executive produced by marek winiarski for not two records

Special thanks

to the musicians for their outstanding contributions and inspiration. Thanks to marek + not two; melanie, Jacob, and ciaran; minga; katherine, ed, and alex ricart; jason lafarge; adam Shrewsbury; myles boisen; dan wilson; marshall alien; eric ziarko; nick webb; luke stewart; nick millevoi; brett nagafuchi; paul larkowski; ray king; william hooker; herb robertson; alex gold and the fridge dc

 

Sonic Youth

guitarist Thurston Moore and ex-Black Flag frontman Henry Rollins have brought free jazz players to the attention of new and younger audiences. Moore has recorded with and promoted the music of Paul Flaherty, William Hooker, John Zorn, Chris Corsano, and Mats Gustafsson and Rollins (back in the 90s) with Matthew Shipp, Roscoe Mitchell, and Charles Gayle.

Same can be said for Edward Ricart of the free-rock duo Matta Gawa (with drummer Sam Lohman) and the avant-rock trio Hyrrokkin. He has collaborated with Paul Dunmall, Peter Brotzmann, and Merzbow. His efforts to incorporate free jazz in his music have led to a quartet with trumpeter Herb Robertson, bassist Jason Ajemian, and drummer Andrew Barker. In 2011, they released Ancón (Slam).

That same quartet, sans Robertson, is expanded here into an octet by adding second drummer Lohman and second bassist Vattel Cherry to a frontline horn section of saxophonist Aaron Martin, trumpeter Roy Campbell, and trombonist Steve Swell.

The two lengthy pieces (35 and 37 minutes) are examples of free jazz instant composing that charges forward with the dynamism of rock and the fraternity of jazz. Set against the passionate pulse of “Sekhmet,” the Octet forges a platform for the braiding of horns and the splicing of Ricart’s guitar into an animated stew. The octet is content to parboil, as individual voices solo over the stew. For such a busy session and crowded stage, the recording is first rate. The second track, “Amaterasu” grips tighter on the throat. The two drummers, Barker and Lohman engage the band in an endurance contest matching energy drumming against the other’s countenance. When the intensity does break, the relative quiet of the improvising continues to crackle and sizzle with a satisfying ferocity. — Mark Corroto

CD version (incl. shipment cost world-wide)

MP3 version (101.61MB zip download)